TLC logo TLC #81:  Sept. 19, 2005


 
Dear Hearts & Gentle People:
 
The following comes courtesy of Shirley Collobert '50 Guevel. This abbreviated TLC is to help promote good attendance at the following:
 
LHS Class of 1950 is doing it again...another class reunion...we are getting together for the 55th anniversary of our High School graduation!
 
The dates are September 23, 24, 25.  We will be getting together at the Elks Lodge for dinner on Friday evening, 23rd.  Then on Saturday, 24th, we have several things planned.  Some will be touring one of our apple orchards and then on to a Winery tour where we will see the processing of grapes and how they get to be wine!  Some may go to one of the casinos...
 
Our big event will be our dinner on Saturday evening at the Moose Lodge in Lexington.  We will be gathering at 6:00 for visiting, eating at 7:00 and more visiting, updates, etc. 
 
Visitors will be welcome after 9:00 on Saturday evening If anyone would like to come visit with Class members that evening.  There will be music for dancing and lots of good conversation.
 
We will wind up our week-end with a breakfast on Sunday morning at the Lexington Inn at 9:00.   We are looking forward to a good time and lots of "remember when."
 
As for the old hometown, all of the old bridge is down except for the last section over land on our south side. For the complete photo story, courtesy of Mary Nicodemus at Citron Communications, go to:
 
http://www.historiclexington.com/index/html
 
Click on News & Events at the bottom of the page; then click on Tourism to see the complete sequence of destruction. Our old bridge served us well.
 
Just today the state Missouri Community Betterment judges visited Lexington to receive a presentation by our local Community Betterment organization which will determine if we (Lexington) win any awards at the state conference in October.
 
The 5 projects of the time frame 8/1/04-7/31/05 that we presented included:
 
- The Vietnam Wall replica visiting Lexington;
- The "LIVE! in Lexington" concert series;
- The Congressman Ike Skelton Bridge Dedication ceremonies;
- The Community Development Block Grant project which demolished condemned
      buildings, cleared the lots for new construction, and relocated affected residents;
- The Lexington 4 Life project.
 
All are efforts you can be proud of.
 
As we prepared for the presentation, we heard another explosion as one of the bridge piers was taken down. Soon all that will be left is a memory.
 
Make that plural. Several memories came floating in after the last TLC:
 
This from Jan Jiovenale '57 Tubiolo:

Here are my personal BRIDGE MEMORIES:

#1. The river flooded in 1951 (and again in 1952) and the water came to the base of the bridge ramp on the Ray county side.  My Grandad had a row boat moored at the end of the bridge because both his and his father's farms were across the river and while Great-grandpa Matt's farm was under water on the flatlands, our farm was in the foothills west of Henrietta and the animals still had to be fed, so he rowed over about every other day.  I could go to the bottom of the bridge, but was not allowed to go with him because it took a full day to make the trip and because of the horrible smell of dead fish.  We did drive through the bottoms once the water went down, but it was truly horrible with muddy water and dead animals (mainly fish), everywhere. 

#2   The first summer I got permission to ride my horse, Prince, to town for the summer from our farm near Henrietta it was an adventure.  It's about 8 or 9 miles away and the trip was exciting for me but pretty uneventful, until we got onto the bridge.  My stirrup was even with the bridge railing, but I sat much higher and it looked a lonnnnng way across and a lonnnnng way down.  I wasn't too worried because my horse was pretty calm since I used to ride him in parades, so it didn't bother him but it sure made me jittery, especially when twice drivers drove up behind and honked to scare the horse.  Most people were very polite and patient and we made it fine.  It was always a one-way trip though - he went home in a trailer in the fall.

And finally, from Lucia Cope '59 Hulston:
 
Funny to read all the references to the "old bridge," as in our family it was for a long time referred to as the "new bridge," since before its construction, my grandfather, Tilton Davis, ran ferry boats across the river.
 
More mail and more news next time. Till then I remain
Your Devoted Scribe,
Susan
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



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